


Rivers of Time

by CrystalNavy



Series: Time Travel [1]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Gen, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-29
Updated: 2018-09-29
Packaged: 2019-07-19 00:08:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16129517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrystalNavy/pseuds/CrystalNavy
Summary: Luffy and Sabo visit their brother's grave after everything that has happened.And the next thing they know is that they are back to Kingdom of Goa.....back to when they were still children. And one person that they held dear to their heart above everyone else is with them.And they would keep it that way.





	1. Pirate King's appreciation day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luffy and Sabo organize a 'Pirate King' appreciation day, an appreciation day dedicated to Gol D. Roger and his family.
> 
> Ace is not amused.

If Ace were to be honest with himself, he felt out of the loop in some strange way. Sabo and Luffy walked behind him, conversing among themselves idly, and sharing knowing looks here and there. Often times, they would look at him like they were expecting him to disappear at any second. During those times, Luffy would often latch onto his body, smiling happily each time he succeeded, while Sabo watched them with the smile on his face.

It was nearly noon when Sabo finally spoke to him.

"Why don't you go out and get some meat for Luffy and me?" Sabo suggested, looking at Luffy, then at Ace.

"Sure." Ace easily agreed

They needed some time alone to talk, he could understand that much. That, and if he happened to overhear at least part of their conversation, he would be able to understand whatever they were hiding better. With that in mind, he gave his brothers one last glance, before disappearing into the woods.

Once he was gone, Sabo sat down on the rock next to Luffy.

"So how exactly do we go about this?" Sabo began nervously

"We do what we came here to do." Luffy stated bluntly "We came here for a reason - to save him - so that's what we will do."

Sabo chuckled at that. Leave it to Luffy to simplify things.

"Well, I think I might know how to go about this." Sabo finally spoke, after mulling for a while "But I need your help."

"Of course I'll help, shishishishi!" Luffy laughed "Sabo is so smart!"

"We need to let a few adults know as well, and have them help us." Sabo said

They were both smiling, and ready to create the biggest event ever held on Dawn Island.

-x-

When Ace emerged from another excursion into the woods - again requested by Sabo and Luffy - carrying a deer on his back, he couldn't see Luffy or Sabo anywhere. Figuring they must have gotten tired of waiting and returned to the hut, he headed there as well.

However, when he got there, he scowled. The entrance was flanked by accurate statues of his father. 

His biological father.

How did they manage to build this? And more importantly, why? 

"We didn't make them." Sabo explained, as if reading his mind "We stole them from Loguetown. Old man Naguri helped us get there as fast as possible. Luffy wanted them brought here, and you know how he gets. He wanted to have a day dedicated to King of the Pirates, so we planned all of this for his sake. A 'Gol D. Roger' day, if you will."

At this moment, Dadan emerged from the hut, wiping sweat from her brow. Ace scoffed at her. She knew that this was a taboo subject for him, and yet she helped out nonetheless.

She caught his glare, and her mouth stretched into an unapologetic grin.

"Enjoy the day, brat." Dadan gave him thumbs-up.

-x-

Luffy was washing his hands in the basin, when Sabo joined him.

"Ace doesn't seem that thrilled." Luffy pouted "This day is for him as much as it's for his Dad."

"True, but he still hates his dad." Sabo pointed out "This was where everything stems from, and it's what got him killed. Akainu's praise towards Roger and scorn towards Whitebeard pushed him over the edge. We have to make him less susceptible to Akainu's taunts in the future, just in case everything else fails."

With this settled, they returned to the main room, where breakfast was being served. As she served the food, Dadan also handed out the flyers. All of them said the same thing.

SUPPORT GOL D. ROGER, KING OF THE PIRATES

She hesitated for a brief moment, before giving one to Ace as well. Luffy and Sabo giggled upon receiving theirs.

The door opened, and Makino stepped into the room.

"Presenting the guests of honor." Makino announced "The crew whose Captain sailed with the Pirate King, the Red-Hair Pirates!"

And true enough, they came inside with all of their glory. Lucky Roo, Yasopp, Benn Beckmann, and finally, Shanks himself.

"Missed you, kid." Shanks grinned "And we heard from Makino that today is an appreciation day for the Pirate King, so we absolutely had to come."

"Welcome, Shanks." Luffy flashed him his usual sunny grin "These are my brothers, Ace and Sabo."

"Pleased to meet you." Sabo offered Shanks his hand in greeting.

Shanks laughed jovially.

"A good dedication day isn't complete without stories." Shanks announced "Would you like to hear some stories about Roger?"

"Sure!" Luffy beamed, relocating himself so that he was seated on Ace's lap.

"Of course." Sabo agreed

Ace wanted to leave, but couldn't, because doing so would hurt Luffy. The little devil probably planned for this. He scowled at his little brother, as Shanks began his story.


	2. Gold and Silver

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last thing Ace remembers is being knocked out. When he wakes up, he finds himself surrounded by his two brothers and his father's first mate.

"Wanna go hunting?" Luffy asked Ace come morning "It's your birthday, and hunting is your favorite pastime, so what do you say?" 

"All right." Ace agreed, trying to hide his smile, something that he knew to be futile.

And so, Ace and Luffy ventured into the forest, excitement spurring them on, while Sabo trekked behind them. Then, when they were about to enter the forest, Ace felt a pipe collide with his skull, and he fell into the blissful darkness.

"You didn't kill him, did you?" Luffy raised his head to look at Sabo 

"Of course not. I wouldn't do the very thing we're trying to prevent." Sabo deadpanned "I only hit him hard enough to knock him out. You know that he is a tad uncooperative when it comes to these things."

"Oh, okay." Luffy's mouth stretched into a grin

"KUMA!" Sabo shouted out "You can come out now!"

And the bear-like spy for the Revolutionary army stepped out of the line of trees.

"You are the kid Dragon met two weeks ago." Kuma merely stated

"Yes." Sabo nodded "And I need your help. I need you to use your fruit powers to send us to Sabaody Archipelago."

He gestured to Luffy, Ace and himself.

"Very well." Kuma nodded, uncovering his hands.

-x-

Sabo got up and dusted himself off, before lifting Ace's prone body up and hoisting it onto his own back to the best of his abilities. After a couple of minutes, Luffy got up as well.

"Now, we need to find that old man's house, and convince them to train us."

"Would he agree?" Luffy wondered

"Of course he would." Sabo laughed "We have something to use as a leverage to get him to train us."

Luffy looked between Sabo and Ace, before he understood.

"But we're doing this to save Ace!" Luffy pouted "That's why we need to train."

"Calm down." Sabo soothed "We'll only be telling the truth. That the Pirate King's son would be killed if Rayleigh doesn't agree to train us."

-x-

"And why should I agree to this?" Rayleigh took a sip of the wine

"We have your former Captain's son." Sabo took off his hat and placed it atop the table in one smooth motion "And unless you agree to train all three of us, we'll be unable to guarantee his continued survival."

"Is that so?" Rayleigh's eyes twinkled with emotion "But I find it interesting that you never said that he'd die by your own hands."

"If you don't train all three of us, he'll die." Sabo refused to budge "That's all you need to know."

"I see." Rayleigh's expression became melancholic "Who kills him, then?"

"Admiral Akainu." Sabo disclosed after a brief hesitation "So will you train us, old man?"

"I will." Rayleigh stood up "But that'll have to wait until your companion regains his strength.

-x-

"So." Rayleigh sat onto the chairs next to Ace's assigned bed "You ready to spill?"

"I am assuming that Sabo and Luffy already did." Ace crossed his arms "First they knock me out, then they kidnap me and bring me here against my will, and then they spill my darkest secret."

Despite his disposition, it didn't escape Rayleigh's attention that there was no real bite in his tone.

"You care about them very much, do you not?" Rayleigh's brown eyes met Ace's grey ones.

"More than anything." Ace whispered softly

"Then it shouldn't come as a suprise to you that they love you more than anything as well." Rayleigh said gently, but firmly "They are willing to do anything for you. They came to me with a request to help both them and yourself get stronger just so you won't have to die."

"How did you figure that out?" Ace wondered "I assume that they never explicitly said that it was me."

"They didn't." Rayleigh confirmed "But after putting all the pieces together, it wasn't hard to figure out."

Ace was already asleep at this point, so Rayleigh tucked him into bed.

"Have a nice long rest, my Godson." Rayleigh said gently "Your training begins the day after tomorrow."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to make some honest to goodness Ace-Rayleigh moments, because their relationship could have been something special......
> 
> Alas, it never happened in canon thanks to the tragic death which was nothing more than a scheme by the original author to make us all cry. *glares*
> 
> So, I took some liberties and laid the foundations for the truly special relationship they were supposed to develop......


End file.
